Track shoe with cushioned heelreceiving pocket



G. H. GILLIS 2,598,782

TRACK SHOE WITH CUSHIONED HEEL RECEIVING POCKET Y June 3, 1952 FiledNov; 4. 1949 INVENTOR GEORGE H. GILLIS Patented June 3, 1952 TENT TRACKSHOE WITH RECEIVING POCKET- George H. Gillis, Fitchburg ltlass irlieetinzllowmbc w e 'i e 2 m This invention relates to; athletic ShQfiSiflIldmore particularly to shoes, constructed 1110'. meet the requirementsoftrack athletes. Shoes for this service are subjected'at -timestoheavyjlpres sure at the heel portion; and laterally extended fasteners,such asstitches; ,or-the like; at' this portion of the shoe, which;present less yielding portions thanadj acent shoe "parts are. liable tocause discomfort to the wearer;

It is an object-of "the present'invention;there" fore, to provide ashoedevoid' of -such less yielding portions where the-heavy pressureisgexerted at the heel, andfurther td provide substantial cushioningmeans for the heel which will distribute the pressure over an extendedarea and will absorb sudden and severe shocks. To these ends theoutersole of the shoe constructed in accordance with this invention iscontinued rearwardly beyond the sole portion of the shoe up the back ofthe foot in a continuous smooth curve, and inwardly of this curve thereis positioned a cushioning pad of yielding material such as spongerubber, or the like, which may be overlaid with a lining element toprevent direct contact of this pad with the foot, the central heelportion of the shoe being entirely devoid of stitches or other fasteningelements.

For a complete understanding of this invention, reference may be had tothe accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a partially disassembledperspective view of certain of the shoe parts, portions being brokenaway.

Figure 2 is a view partly in side elevation and partly broken away of ashoe embodying the invention.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary elevational view looking rearwardly againstthe quarter linings and outer-sole and showing a cushion plug inposition, certain other parts of the shoe being omitted.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary inverted plan view of the heel portion of theshoe showing the stitch lines.

Referring to the drawings, at i is indicated the quarters of the shoeupper which come together substantially centrally of the heel end of theshoe. The quarters are cut away and skived along their edges as at 3below the top edge of the heel end of the shoe as shown in Figure 3. Anoutersole member It) may extend rearwardly in overlapping relation tothe lower and forward extremities of the quarters, and about centrallythereof a rounded plug 5 of cushioning material such as sponge or foamrubber is seated to bridge 2 Claims. (Cl, 36 -25 across thelow.ex=*';edges:.of thezquartersandtabOVe the rear end portion: of :theroutersolezel 6 as shown in Figures 2 and 3.

The outerside, iii Z-has -a rearwardextension-,1 which passesaroundtheheel-jend ofjihe shoecand up outside of thesquartersandafurnishesan oute side backstay portion 12. This; outersolevthus forms alongitudinallyand laterally. concave socket at the heelendof the ShOGWhiChfiSDYeI'rlaid substantially;centrally by;,-the' plug;5; In engagement; with this plugmandrthe-itop faceiof the innersole}!may be placedone .;or more ;cus h-. ioning elements such as l5 which?alsomay be of sponge or foam rubber, or other suitable material, andoverlying the cushion i5 is a short sock lining l6. This sock liningextends up within the quarters at the heel end as shown in Figure 4 andmay be secured at its upper edge to the quarters as by stitches I1. Thisstitching I! may also pass through the outside backstay portion 12 ofthe outersole. The forward portions of the sock lining 16 and thecushion element I5 may be ccmented into the rounded socket and formtherewith a cupped pocket to receive the heel of the wearer, this pocketbeing concaved both longitudinally and laterally. The lower edges of thequarters may extend between the inner and outersoles where these partsmay be secured together as by the lines of stitching 20 shown in Figure4. These lines of stitching preferably terminate somewhat short of theheel end of the shoe and lines of stitching 2| on opposite sides maysecure the side margins of the extension II to the quarters. Thecushioning element I5 is preferably cemented against the plug 5 and theinnersole 4, and the forward end of the sock lining may be cemented tothe cushioning element l5 and to the innersole 4.

It will thus be seen that a shoe has been pro vided in which there is nolateral stitching across the heel pocket and that the side stitching iswell spaced from the central portion of the heel pocket and where it isnot subjected to the severe pressures which are taken and absorbed bythe cushioning elements l5 and 5. The pocket for the heel abovethecushioning elements is concave both laterally and longitudinally andprovides a socket for the heel of the wearer. This socket is heavilycushioned and is devoid of any fastening elements which might beuncomfortable to the wearer of the shoe-particularly when the wearersubjects the shoe to severe service.

From the foregoing description of an embodiment of this invention, itshould be evident to those skilled in the art that various changes andmodifications may be made without departing from its spirit or scope.

I claim:

1. A track shoe having'an innersole, an outersole, and upper materials,said outersole extending about the heel portion of the shoe and upwardlytoward the top edge of the shoe and outwardly of said'upper materials atthe heel end. said upper-materials having their lower margins extendingbetween said inner and outersoles, lines of stitching spaced from thecentral axis of the shoe securing said outersole extension to said uppermaterials, and lines of stitching on opposite sides of the shoe joiningsaid upper materials and inner and outersole adjacent to the sidemargins of said soles, said outersole and upper materials and innersoleforming a longitudinally;

and laterally concave heel-receiving pocket, a rounded cushioning plugseated and cemented substantially centrally in said pocket, and cushionmaterial and a sock lining overlying said plug and said innersole andupper materials within said pocket.

2; A track shoe having an innersole, an outersole, and upper materials,said outersole extending about the heel portion of th shoe and upwardlytoward the top edge of the shoe and outwardly of said upper materials atthe heel end, said upper materials having their lower margins extendingbetween said inner and outersoles, lines of stitching spaced from thecentral-axis of the shoe securing said outersole extension to said uppermaterials, and lines of stitching on oppo- *said concave pocket.

GEORGE H. GILLIS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 74,912 Hadley Feb. 25, 1868564,767 Schneider July 28, 1896 811,438 Rhodes Jan. 30, 1906 1,206,721Laurie Nov. 28, 1916 1,747,331 Stuart Feb. 18, 1930 1,941,853 ColavitoJan. 2, 1934 2,104,048 Marshall Jan. 4, 1938 2,111,935 Miller Mar. 22,1938 2,385,743 Vaisey Sept. 25, 1945 2,460,097 Maling Jan. 25, 19492,463,296 Moore Mar. 1, 1949 2,472,987 Rizzo June 14, 1949

